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Guidelines for Examination in the EPO

Guidelines for Examination - Table of Contents  
PART C GUIDELINES FOR SUBSTANTIVE EXAMINATION PART B PART D  
CHAPTER III CLAIMS CHAPTER II CONTENT OF A EUROPEAN PATENT APPLICATION (OTHER THAN CLAIMS) CHAPTER IV PATENTABILITY  
3. Kinds of claim 2. Form and content of claims 4. Clarity and interpretation of claims  
3.5 Arrangement of claims 3.4 Independent and dependent claims 3.6 Subject-matter of a dependent claim  

3.5

Arrangement of claims

 

All dependent claims referring back to a single previous claim and those referring back to several previous claims must be grouped together to the extent and in the most appropriate way possible. The arrangement must therefore be one which enables the association of related claims to be readily determined and their meaning in association to be readily construed. The examiner should object if the arrangement of claims is such as to create obscurity in the definition of the subject-matter to be protected. In general, however, when the corresponding independent claim is allowable, the examiner should not concern himself unduly with the subject-matter of dependent claims, provided he is satisfied that they are truly dependent and thus in no way extend the scope of protection of the invention defined in the corresponding independent claim (see also III, 3.8).

Rule 43(4)




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